I never lied to you
by Avret
Summary: It is always easier to destroy than to create. Therefore, anybody able to become a light of hope can become an even greater shadow of despair. Mastermind!Rational!Naegi, set during the final trial. Oneshot, rated T for one slightly graphic section.


I never lied to you:

The survivors of Hope's peak academy sit arguing around the table of the final trial, their deductions only now reaching the climax. Many people had died, both friends and enemies, but their sacrifices would be made worth it, if only so the mastermind could be brought down. Or at least that's what runs through the mind of one Kyouko Kirigiri, SDHS Detective, as she stands to make her final conviction.

" And the villain who committed all of these crimes, the mastermind behind the despair...is Junko Enoshima! You faked your own death by killing your sister, you forced our friends into murder, and it is you who will be punished for it!"

Monokuma bears this proclamation impassively, barely moving to acknowledge he has perceived it, beyond his verbal response.

"**Are you certain of your answer? Then let us have one last ballot to end it all. Upupupu..."**

The ballot buttons slide up before each student, and everybody presses a button. The slot machine slides up from the back wall, and Enoshima's head slides into place on all three slots. However, unlike every other trial, there is no jackpot sound, and the word 'guilty' does not appear. Instead the machine buzzes, flashing red, and Monokuma begins to laugh with a long, hearty guffaw.

"**And you were doing so well, too! It seems your journey will end here... though I suppose I do owe you all an explanation..."**

Kirigiri's eyes widen, and she hesitates before replying.

"An...explanation?"

"**Let us begin with the fundamentals: Why are you certain that Enoshima was the mastermind? 'why do you believe what you believe?' is the fundamental question of any rationalist, after all."**

Togami grits his teeth, anger clear on his face.

"So, it was you all along. Show yourself, Naegi."

"**Certainly, Byakuya. After all, what's a final scene without a good monologue..."**

And, with this, Monokuma falls into silence. One of the corners of the room seems to suddenly grow darker, and out of the shadows walks Makoto Naegi, the SDHS Rationalist. The remaining students gasp. After a few seconds, Kirigiri turns towards him, her voice filled with confusion and betrayal as she asks the question on the minds of all the others in the room.

"But...how? We saw you die! You...sacrificed yourself for us all!"

Naegi smirks.

"Oh, did I? Or did you see an execution that looked like I had died, and assume the rest? Did it never cross any of your minds that this execution was the only one where you never saw the body?"

Kirigiri recoils, but remains silent.

"I see it did not. It would seem that even the talents of the SDHS detective fail when confronted with a truly emotionally difficult problem."

After a few seconds, Kirigiri manages to speak, all thoughts of victory now gone from her mind, replaced by despair. Blind, uncomprehending, despair.

"But...why? Why this whole charade?"

Naegi's face grows cold, and his smirk fades, to be replaced by a scowl.

"Why? Because I spent my childhood surrounded by idiocy. Because after the 5th time I saw my parents fail to comprehend the easiest of ideas, I realized I was being controlled by people with the minds of children. Because everyone around me refused to see the true darkness of the world, as if ignoring a problem made it not exist-"

Asahina, the SDHS Swimmer, cuts Naegi off.

"And to fix that, you created more problems? That makes no sense!"

"I did what I needed to. Sometimes, when the world is as broken down as this one is, we need to rebuild. And to rebuild, we need to get rid of the vestiges of the old world. So, call me evil. Call me Despair. But I am the only person willing to do what needs to be done."

Kirigiri replies, her voice still fraught with pain and confusion.

"You...you've caused the deaths of millions. Millions more will die in the future. How exactly is that what needed to be done?"

Naegi responds, his voice now entirely cold.  
>"If somebody were to offer you global immortality at the cost of 1 million lives, would you take the offer? How about interstellar travel? Because that is the choice I've made. Now that society's been broken down, I can control it. I can use the combined resources and minds of humanity to accomplish things that you could barely imagine. Because of me, the human species will be able to make a mark on the universe! How can you stand there and claim high moral ground when every day, you stand back and watch as thousands of people die? The amount I've killed, those millions? Almost as many people died of 'natural causes' only in the years you spent in Hope's Peak. I am trying to stem that tide."<p>

Naegi sits down on the center chair, lifting Monokuma as he does so. He remains silent for a few seconds, before Togami cuts in.

"What now? You offer us places in your coming empire? Because if so, let me be the first to say, go to h-"

Naegi cuts him off, some mirth now re-entering his eyes.

"Offer you places? Of course not. This whole game was a test, which you failed. Now, if you had figured me out, maybe I would have offered you places. But you couldn't even make the most basic of deductions! So, no, I won't be offering you places by my side. After all, I have the oddest feeling that you would betray me in a heartbeat, even if I would have found your help worthwhile."

"What is to become of us, then?" Kirigiri asks, the pain in her voice now joined by fear.

"Why, you know exactly what's going to happen to you, Kyouko. After all, I have been foreshadowing it from the beginning. You are all going to die. Now, since you won't be watching, and the viewers have already had their fill of ironic executions, I think I'll pick something...simple. Now, if you all have no more questions, I think I'll begin the final proceedings."

The students break into cold sweats almost as a single entity, fear now governing all of their minds as they all search desperately for some way, any way to get out of the dilemma. Suddenly, Touko Fukawa faints, and her alternate personality takes over. Immediately after Shou awakes, she lunges at Naegi, Genoscissors already out and slicing. Naegi sidesteps the lunge, hands flicking out and hitting nerve clusters on Shou's arms. The scissors drop from her now limp, useless hands.

"Now this is curious...how, exactly did you know to attack me the moment you awoke? Ah, I see. Your personalities don't share memories, and therefore the wipe didn't take. Am I correct?"

Shou remains defiantly silent.

"Thank you for confirming my hypothesis. Now, are you going to keep resisting futilely?"

She remains silent, but begins subtly backing away and dropping to one knee, out of Naegi's vision, or so she hopes. After she reaches her chair, she hurriedly moves the genoscissors to holders on the inside of her sleeves, and sits back down. Now all she needs is an opportunity...

Naegi laughs, and the loud, harsh sound seems out of place in the environment.

"Come now, how unintelligent do you think I am? There are metal detectors under each of your seats. Now, for your continued insolence, I feel you deserve to be punished."

He quickly slams down a button, and metal claws grasp both of Shou's arms. A few seconds later, they both slam shut, cutting her arms off at the elbows. She gasps in pain, her face white, and moves her arms in, cradling the now bleeding stumps.

"I suspect that got your attention. Now, if none of you will attempt resisting again, I have a monologue to finish...actually, never mind. This whole farce has reinforced why I dislike humanity. So, I'm just going to end it all right now. Goodbye, classmates. You likely won't be missed."

Naegi moves toward a button marked with a skull, hand reaching out towards it. Kirigiri cuts in with one last question, the one thing that's been on her mind this whole time.

"...Why would you set us up to fail? Why would you lie to us, if this was a true test?"

Naegi freezes, and the coldness seems to drain from his face. When he finally responds, his voice is shaky and uncertain.

"Lie to you? Every piece of information was true. Every deduction you made was something you made on your own. I made this as an entrance exam, and you were unable to pass. Do not blame me for your inability. Because I never lied to you."

And with that, he slams down the button, as much extinguishing his own doubts as he is extinguishing the lives of others. As he makes the final, convulsive movement, the voice inside him that had been second-guessing him at every turn, questioning his morality, finally dies. And thus, when Kirigiri slides into the blackness towards execution, that face she sees is not one of uncertainty. It is one of coldness.

A/N: Here's the story that won the poll. I feel I caught the personalities and reactions of characters well, and apologize for any OOCness. There are slight hints to the upcoming plot of LiDD, though not everything in this story will happen in that fic.

Please review!


End file.
